Wednesday newspaper round-up: High streets, Brexit, business rates, Tesla

The crisis on UK high streets could leave 100,000 shops empty within a decade, according to an independent review that argues struggling retailers should no longer be relied upon to prop up ailing town centres. The Grimsey Review 2 makes a series of recommendations including an overhaul of the business rates system and a ban on out-of-town developments. It predicts nearly 70,000 high street jobs will disappear this year. – Guardian

Brexit will make people outside London worse off, two reports have found. Household bills will rise by between £245 and £1,961 a year after Brexit, with a disproportionately adverse impact on lower-income groups and people in Northern Ireland, Wales, the Midlands and the north-east, they say. The Institute for Public Policy Research found that a hard Brexit might reduce inequality between low- and high-income groups, by hitting higher earners in the pocket most. – Guardian

The Government should consider abolishing the “hated and out-of-date” business rates system and give councils more power to penalise landlords who leave shops empty, according to a new review of how to revive Britain’s high streets by retail veteran Bill Grimsey. Writing exclusively for The Daily Telegraph, Mr Grimsey, who previously ran Iceland and DIY chains Wickes and Focus, called for “decisive action” from local authorities to help high streets adapt amid a shift towards online shopping and soaring costs. - Telegraph

Tesla shares recorded their biggest drop since March yesterday, after a report suggested the electric car maker had removed a test from its Model 3 production process last week in a bid to hit its targets. The stock closed down 7.2pc, wiping more than $5bn (£3.8bn) from Tesla's market capitalisation and erasing all its gains from Monday,when it revealed it had finally met its Model 3 production target of 5,000 cars per week. – Telegraph

A leading hedge fund manager has turned up the heat on the takeover watchdog, demanding that it put a higher “floor” under the share price of Sky. The pay-TV operator is enmeshed in a bidding war between Disney, the Hollywood film studio, and Comcast, one of America’s largest cable companies. The pair are vying to buy 21st Century Fox, which owns 39 per cent of Sky, and has a long standing bid to take full control of the British satellite broadcaster. Fox has agreed to sell the bulk of its business, including its American film studio and its stake in Sky, to Disney for $71.3 billion. – The Times

British shoppers may face steep price rises after Brexit as supermarkets attempt to stop profits from sliding by more than £700 million. Household budgets will be squeezed after Britain leaves the EU, regardless of whether it strikes trade deals, according to a report by Oliver Wyman, the consultancy, as higher EU import costs put businesses under pressure. – The Times